


This Could Be Us But You Playin'

by Shapeshiftinterest



Category: Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart (Cartoon)
Genre: Back rubs, Established Relationship, Falling Asleep on Someone, Grocery Shopping, Kissing, M/M, Making Out, Other, Pre-Relationship, Purring, established relationship shadow badgermao, point is that they're very comfortable with being together, pre relationship badgermao, shadow badgermao is already dating, sitting in someone's lap, they're either dating or a little past the marriage stage
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:53:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25221193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shapeshiftinterest/pseuds/Shapeshiftinterest
Summary: set after fright wigthe sheriff’s department didn’t defeat their shadow versions but still made peace with the kingbecause the king doesn’t have those fears anymore, the shadow sheriff’s department stopped attacking but didn’t disappearnow all 6 of them are staying at HQ, either until honey and camille come up with a solution, or until they possibly go away on their own (like a timed thing)
Relationships: Badgerclops/Mao Mao Mao, Badgermao, Shadowclops/ Shadow Mao Mao Mao, shadow badgermao
Comments: 8
Kudos: 47





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> big thanks to daarin-nekoneko's tags on my shadow badgermao art (original post below) which I used for the title 
> 
> https://shapeshiftinterest.tumblr.com/post/621930214615810048/more-shadow-badgermao-content-also-some-lucky

“So, uh. What’re we gonna do with these guys again?“ 

Badgerclops leaned back in his chair to look through the kitchen doorway, their shadow counterparts sitting on the couch and snickering(?) at something on TV. 

It was kind of hard to tell since they didn’t really talk.

The two sheriff’s departments had been evenly matched during their musical number battle, so the original trio had resorted to locking themselves in the harpsichord room with the king.

After talking it out and solving the midnight mirror problem, they’d opened the door to discover the shadow trio just hanging around.

Apparently once the king stopped being afraid of their opinions they’d lost interest in fighting their doubles.

The only problem now was that no one knew how to get rid of them.

And so the sheriff’s department decided to bring them to HQ until something could be done.

Mao shrugged and took a long sip from his Lucky Ducky mug. 

“Camille and Honey said they’d work on a way to get rid of them since blasting the king a second was deemed ‘unethical‘,” he air quoted, “and we can’t finish them off ourselves.” 

“Uuuugghhh this is so _weird!_ “ Badgerclops groaned, using his robo arm to snag a bag of Cheddar Paws from the cabinet. 

Only to find the door already open and a different robo arm quickly retreating into the living room.

“HEY!!“ 

He rushed out of his seat just in time to see Shadowclops offering the bag to his couch companion, their own face covered in crumbs, already munching on the handful they'd taken. 

“What the heck man, those were mine!“ Badgerclops stomped over to the couch and jabbed Shadowclops’ chest.

“Um, actually those are _mine_?“ Mao said tapping his foot. He crossed his arms and raised a brow at the other. 

Badgerclops glanced behind him.

“Whatever man, you know what I mean.“

Shadowclops looked down at the claw pushing into his chest before narrowing their eye and glaring at Badgerclops, shoulders hunching like they were about to square up.

Until Shadow Mao leaned over to put a hand on their partner’s robo arm, closing their eyes and shaking their head. 

They turned to Badgerclops and offered the Cheddar Paws, gesturing to the other side of the couch and ‘smiling’. 

Badgerclops eyed the bag for a few seconds before taking it and sitting on the far right cushion.

“... fine, but only cuz you didn’t eat them all.“ he grumbled.

Mao rolled his eyes and went to sit in-between the Badgerclops’ but it was a tight squeeze.

“Badgerclops, move over. I wanna watch Kento Ken too.“ he said, digging his elbow into the other’s side.

“Dude, quit it. This is as far as I can go, why don’t _you_ move over?“ He smacked Mao’s hand away and elbowed him back.

“I _can’t_ , that’s why _you_ should do it!” 

“No, _you!_ “

At this point they were jostling the whole couch trying to get each other to make some space, until Mao was shoved a little too hard and bumped into Shadowclops.

He’d almost fallen off if it wasn’t for them wrapping an arm around his middle and dragging him back into a sitting position.

“Oops, sorry Mao.“ Badgerclops said sheepishly, picking up a few of the Cheddar Paws that’d dropped onto the carpet and going back to the kitchen for more snacks.

Meanwhile, feeling a little uncomfortable, Mao scrambled out of the shadow person’s grip. 

He looked over to see that Shadow Mao had moved from their seat on the far left cushion to sit in Shadowclops’ lap, and was currently nuzzling their face against their co-hero’s chest.

Mao was sure that if the shadows could make a sound, his counterpart would be purring, loudly.

It was a little weird to see their dopplegangers being so affectionate, but it wasn’t like Mao had never purred whenever he or Badgerclops had been overly stressed when they’d been on the road.

Shadow him was probably just doing that to help his friend because they couldn’t go back to wherever they came from yet.

Yup! Totally normal platonic friend purring due to immense stress.

Badgerclops returned with a ton of snacks and drinks for the Kento Ken marathon that they were apparently gonna watch now. 

He paused for a second at the shadow duo but then just shrugged and scooched Mao over so he could sit down.

Adorabat and Shadowbat had flown in halfway though one of the episodes, both almost completely covered in paint. 

The two deputies stole a few juice pouches and pretzels before Adorabat went to the bedroom, calling down that they could share her bunk. 

Shadowbat gave her guardians a hug, zooming into the dojo to retrieve the rest of the art supplies and flying after their friend.

Mao must’ve fallen asleep, because the next thing he knew he was lying partially on top of Badgerclops. His friend was also asleep, and seemed to have shifted to lie on his back, snoring away with Mao’s cape splayed over both of them.

He turned to check on their shadowy counterparts.

Only to freeze at the sight of them... well it was hard to see, but judging from the light coming from the TV it looked like they were making out.

Huh.

Guess this was happening.

...

NOT!

Mao pushed off the cushy stomach under him and leapt onto the back of the couch, throwing a shuriken at the light switch and startling the shadow creatures. 

Badgerclops flailed awake and fell off the couch.

“What the hell, Mao?!“

“YOU!“ he yelled, pointing at the couple. “Cease your canoodling at once!“

“Man, what are you talking abo- woah!“

Badgerclops had finally noticed the other two. 

Shadowclops was gripping his partner’s hips, holding them steady since they were leaning back a little to look at the other frazzled sheriff. 

The darker hero was still in his lap, one arm slung around the badger’s neck and the other digging their claws into his tool belt.

Shadow Mao tilted their head at the sheriff, as if to say ‘what of it?’.

Mao sporadically waved his free arm, the other on Geraldine’s sheath.

“PDA isn’t allowed here!” he spluttered. 

Shadow Mao quirked a brow at him, letting go of his boyfriend’s tool belt and holding up a finger before gesturing around them.

‘One, we‘re not in public.’

This time he held up two fingers before waving that hand over himself and Shadowclops.

‘Two, nothing we‘re doing can really be called lewd or exposing.’

He then slumped against Shadowclops, resting his head on their chest and lightly bumping them in the chin. 

The taller of the two moved their hands to rest on the cat’s lower back and started rubbing their thumbs in little circles.

Shadow Mao rumbled, closing their eyes in bliss.

Mao was 10 seconds away from going off on them again, probably something about upholding order and personal boundaries or whatever, Badgerclops could feel it.

So before that could happen, he got up and dusted himself off before slinging his angry friend over his shoulder and heading upstairs.

“Wh- Hey! Badgerclops put me down!!“

“Dude! Get off your high horse. They’re just having fun.” 

Mao wriggled a bit but was too tired from his movie nap and previous yelling to do much. 

“This won’t bring chaos, aawww shooshooshooshoosh.” Badgerclops started petting his ears back, the repetitive motion and shushing sounds made Mao’s eyes feel heavy. 

The last thing he saw was Shadow Mao ‘grinning’ at him smugly from the couch.

Mao glared at them, giving out a half-hearted hiss before grumbling and burying his head in Badgerclops’ shoulder.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> grocery shopping with mao mao and shadow mao

“Eggs, milk, flour, detergent...“

Shadow Mao watched as his double mumbled under his breath and checked the grocery list every few minutes to make sure he wasn’t missing anything.

He huffed, still a little upset he couldn’t be paired with his partner.

-earlier that morning-

Shadow Mao and Shadowclops were cuddling on the floor, watching the Doorbell Dangler match between the Adorabats and Badgerlcops, when Mao came into the living room and unplugged the TV.

“Hey! We were about to win!“ Adorabat said, flapping her wings. 

Shadowbat nodded furiously, tossing the controller on the couch and crossing her wings.

“Actually, I was about to win. But yeah, what the heck man. You can’t just turn the TV off when someone’s using it.” 

“Ubupup!“ Mao crossed his arms behind him and started pacing in front of the coffee table. 

“It has come to my attention that with our additional.. guests,” he nodded at Shadowbat and the couple on the floor. “HQ is running out of food faster than usual.“

He paused and rubbed his chin. “It’s kind of weird, I didn’t really expect y’all to eat that much. Or at all really.”

“Never the less!“ he exclaimed, continuing to pace and raising a finger in the air definitively. “Because of this unexpected problem, we will have to go... Grocery Shopping.“

Badgerclops groaned, sliding down in his seat. “Bro I just went like, 3 days ago.”

“I know, Badgerclops. Which is why my doppleganger and I will be going this time.“

“Oh hell yeah, man!“ Badgerclops fist pumped, scooping the Adorabats up and heading to the kitchen for some celebratory ‘i don’t have to do the shopping’ ice cream.

Meanwhile, Shadow Mao’s eyes widened. His ears twitching before they tilted their head and gestured between him Shadowclops. ‘Why can’t we go together?’ he pantomimed.

“Because,“ Mao growled, striding towards his double “The last time I sent you two on a grocery run it took so long, that I had to come get you with the aerocycle.“

Shadow Mao started to raise his hands to sign something but Mao cut him off.

“And! When I finally found you, you were MAKING OUT IN AN ALLEYWAY!!“

He smoothed his ears down, breathing deeply for a bit. “You didn’t even get half the things we needed. We’re going together because I know your moves and I can keep an eye on you. Also I already said Badgerclops didn’t have to go.

Shadow Mao bristled, moving to challenge the other to a duel before two strong arms wrapped around his stomach and pulled him back down.

Struggling against the hold, Shadow Mao glared at his boyfriend. Wasn’t he angry? 

They were sheriff’s department too, of course they knew the rules! And yeah sure, they probably should've done the groceries first. 

But Shadow Mao was sick of sleeping on the couch and worrying if Shadowclops’ back was ok. 

He’d been so tired he’d accidentally crawled into the same bed as the other sheriff a few days ago, both of them waking up cuddled together with their respective Badgerclops’ giggling and taking pictures.

Plus him and Shadowclops hadn’t been able to do anything more than make out since coming to this realm.

What was so wrong about wanting to kiss his significant other and maybe sneak in a butt touch or five? It wasn’t his- well it wasn’t all his fault his boyfriend was smokin’ hot.

Those extra ‘training’ sessions helped them build a ton of stamina after all.

Shadow Mao was brought out of his thoughts by said hot boyfriend nuzzling the fur under his cape, planting little kisses at the back of his neck and stroking his ears.

The smaller shade finally calmed down, side eyeing the other who just gave him a smirk and wiggled his eyebrows. Damn it no! Stop being cute, he was trying to be mad! 

Shadowclops laughed as the other slapped his arm in amused frustration. They gestured at each other until Shadow Mao turned back to Mao, arms crossed and glaring back. 

He stayed like that for a while but then nodded briskly, getting out of Shadowclops’ lap and holding his cheek to give him a small peck on the nose before leaving the living room to get ready.

Mao sighed, nodding at Shadowclops and making his way to the garage.

-current time-

He’d been pissed earlier but this wasn’t so bad. 

‘This other Mao is way too stressed though.‘ Shadow Mao thought.

The two weren’t even at the market place yet and Mao had already arrested 5 people, 2 of those arrests had been Pinky. 

It was gross watching the rhino rub mayonnaise on his wrists and slip way, but very entertaining to see Mao try and catch him again.

Shadow Mao was waiting for him to get back when something caught his eye. Four figures quickly made their way past the sheriff’s, not noticing the shade hot on their tails until they suddenly stopped near the town square.

He watched as they took out a large, wriggling burlap sack and started shaking it. Oooohhh, things were getting interesting now. 

Shadow Mao’s ear twitched at the furious clicking and screeching coming from the bag. He couldn’t hear the figures from here but that didn’t matter. 

Drawing his sword he rushed at them, easily knocking out the tallest of the four before going for the bag. 

And getting blasted from the side by a barrage of cannon ball sized eggs.

-with Mao-

“Blast it, he escaped!“ 

Mao had just finished locking all of Pinky’s contraband mayonnaise in a secure location when he realized Shadow Mao wasn’t there.

“I knew they couldn’t be trus- DUWHAAOOO???” 

Shadow Mao flew by, crashing into the wall next to him. They stood, legs shaky, and were about to leap back into action when Mao gripped them by the shoulder and pulled them back.

“Where were you! You can’t just leave whenever... you... uuuhhh,” Mao looked between his doppleganger and the Sky Pirates, “what’s going on?“

“FOOLS! TIS I, ORANGUSNAKE, LEADER OF THE SKY PIRATES!!“

“Yeah, yeah, yeah we know who you are.“ Mao said, waving his hand. “What’re y’all doing here?“

"Wow, rude much?"

Ratarang jumped onto the still wriggling bag, holding the rope keeping it closed.

“We was gonna set this bag a monsters free and steal all the food! Right, Boss?“

“Yes, sweet Ratarang. Now, RELEASE THE ROACH MONSTERS AAHAHAHAHAHA!!!“

“You got it, Bo- WOAH!“

Ratarang was knocked away by a jar of mayonnaise.

“Not if we have anything to do about it!“ Mao exclaimed, running towards Orangusnake. 

Boss Hosstrich was about to lock on to the sheriff but was startled by Shadow Mao leaping in front of him and slicing his egg cannon in half. 

“N-now now, we can talk this out like gentlemen can’t we?“

Shadow Mao narrowed his eyes, tossing Boss Hosstrich with the other two just as Mao was finishing up his fight with Orangusnake. 

“Wait wait wait wait wait wait wait!“ Orangusnake waved his arms in front of his face.

The two Maos stood in a batter stance and swung, slamming the Sky Pirates and the monster bag into the air.

“We just wanted to get some foooooood!“ There was a loud crash in the distance and a “We’re OK!“ was heard.

Mao turned to face his counterpart, rubbing the back of his head and looking down. 

“Listen, uh. Thanks, for having my back.” he looked up. “I. I’m sorry for doubting you. Heh. We’re both Mao after all, both soon to be Legendary Heroes!”

Mao coughed, holding out his hand. 

“Anyway, uh, friends?”

Shadow Mao’s red eyes widened before turning into happy slits. He nodded, giving the other a thumbs up before giving a firm handshake.

“Great! Let’s go get those groceries, haha.“

The two made their way to the farmers market.

-back at HQ-

“So it’s agreed? We don’t tell either of the Mao’s what happened here.“ Adorabat said, wings folded in front of her as the four deputies sat around the kitchen table.

They all nodded. 

“Ok chill,” Badgerclops said “everybody hands in.“ 

Both sets of deputies put their claws and wings in the middle of the table.

“One, two, BREAK!“

  
The front door slid open. “Oh fuck they’re back, everybody act natural!”

  
“Badgerclops! Adorabat! Shadowclops! Shadowbat! We got you- WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO HQ!!!!!“

  
“Ehehehe, welcome back?“

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> extra:  
> the sky pirates land on their ship and the bag explodes so now they have a bunch of those insect monsters from the king’s dungeon crawling around and wreaking havoc ( ;m;)
> 
> does anyone want me to elaborate on the  
> alleyway makeouts  
> accidental mao cuddles


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mao and Shadow Mao return to see that the HQ has been trashed  
> Adorabat explains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> she doesn’t know what the Badgerclops’ were talking about, just that BC was choking on some toast

Both Maos dropped their grocery bags in shock, eyes widening. 

Mao held his head in disbelief as Shadow Mao lifted a hand to where their mouth would be and let out a silent gasp.

The living room, office, and probably the kitchen, were all a mess. Papers were scattered everywhere and a good half of the furniture was overturned. 

The living room table was split in half, random memorabilia still on fire. Burnt toast was everywhere, on the floor, the walls, even the ceiling. And was that- 

“SOFIA!!“ Mao cried, rushing over to the rafters. “Don’t worry, we’ll get you down from there!“

While Mao was freaking out over the couch, Shadow Mao sprinted towards the kitchen. 

His boyfriend was doing a hand stand while Badgerclops sat backwards in a chair and drew his portrait... in ketchup. Shadow Mao looked past them to see Adorabat T-posing on the kitchen table.

But where was- 

*thump*

The sound brought his attention to their adopted deputy, stuck head first in a box of cookies and struggling to get out.

“BADGERCLOPS WHERE ARE YOU?!“ Mao shouted from the living room. 

“UH, I’M KINDA BUSY HERE MAO” he scoffed, continuing to smear ketchup on the canvas. “Some people just don’t appreciate my creative ways, y’kno?“

“DROP WHAT YOU’RE DOING AND HELP ME WITH SOFIA!!!“

“NO WAY MAN, DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO PAINT SOMEONE DOING A HANDSTAND?!?!“

Shadow Mao shook his head at them before trying to get Shadowbat unstuck, gently tugging the box off their head and wiping the crumbs off.

They blinked and ‘squee’ed at their guardian, the bat’s eyes turning into happy slits as they rubbed the top of their head against his chin in thanks.

Shadow Mao set them on the table next to Adorabat, who was now shoving pieces of toast in her mouth and offering a few slices to her new table buddy.

Mao had also moved to the kitchen and was now in a shouting match with Badgerclops while Shadowclops buttered another piece of toast and watched.

They noticed their shorter companion walking over and handed them a slice with some jam on it, shoving the other 3 pieces into their ‘mouth’ and leaning against the counter.

The cat shade crunched half of it and tossed the rest back to their companion, who snapped it up mid air, before quick stepping behind Mao and putting a hand on their shoulder.

Mao paused, looking over his shoulder at red eyes. He glared for a bit and sighed, pinching the bridge between his eyes. 

“Alright, just. Everyone into the living room. Badgerclops, could you please help me get Sofia down from the rafters.”

-after getting sofia down and putting out the fires-

The Maos stood in front of the broken coffee table, arms crossed as they looked at their deputies.

“Can any of you tell us what happened to HQ while we were gone?“ 

The deputies shared a look but stayed silent.

Mao glowered, foot tapping impatiently. Shadow Mao picked up a piece of toast and waved it at Shadowclops. ‘What’s up with all the burnt toast??’ they signed.

Shadowbat rubbed the back of their neck with one of their wings. 

Mao looked off to the side, “Fine, you leave me no choice, but to withhold the snacks we brought for you until further notice.“ 

Four sets of eyes snapped to attention.

Badgerclops gasped, “You wouldn’t dare!”

“Oh, but I would. And the longer you say nothing the colder they’ll get.”

‘You monsters!’ Shadowbat signed.

Shadowclops put a hand to his forehead, feeling faint.

“Wait!“ Adorabat called out, just as the Maos were going upstairs. “We’ll tell you.“

“Adorabat what are you doing?“ Badgerclops whispered.

“It has to be done! I wanna know what they got us.“

He made a slightly troubled face before conceding.

Adorabat took in a breath “It started like this.“

-a few minutes after the Maos left-

Badgerclops walked into the living room, an Adorabat on each shoulder. Shadowclops looked up from their borrowed Switch but kept pushing buttons rapid fire.

“Sup shadow me, wanna join us and mess around with the toaster while the Mao’s are gone? We’re gonna see how much bread it takes to built a fort out of toast.“

Shadowclops nodded eagerly, saving their game and tossing the Switch onto the couch.

-an ungodly amount of toast later-

“It’s so beautiful.” Badgerclops choked out, wiping a tear from his eye. 

Shadowclops put a hand on his shoulder and handed him a napkin, glowing with pride at the toaster fort they’d made in the living room around the couch. 

All four deputies were decked out in their own toast outfits, personally decorated with different colored jams.

“Badgerclops, we should take a picture to show Mao Mao!“ Adorabat said, tugging on his belt.

“Good idea 'dorabat.“ Badgerclops pet his toolbelt pockets. “Now where did I...?“

Shadowbat swooped over them, dropping the phone into his hands.

“Oh sweet, thanks lil dude.“

They gave him a thumbs up from their perch on Shadowclops’ shoulder.

“Ok everybody, say, ’deputies!’“

“DEPUTIIIIEEESSS!!!“

*click!*

‘Send that one to me.‘ Shadowclops signed.

“Fo’ sho my guy, fo’ sho.“

It wasn’t long until the four were tag team playing against each other. 

Badgerclops fell back against the back of the couch, careful not to knock his toast crown against the top of the fort as he passed his controller to Adorabat.

Shadowclops sat on the opposite end, decked out in similar toast duds. The two watched as their smaller deputies duked it out on screen. 

He leaned over, catching the other’s attention. “Hey so like, what’s up with you and Shadow Mao?“

Shadowclops turned his head and tilted it. ‘What do you mean?’

“I dunno like,” Badgerclops covered his mouth, whispering “why d’y’all smooch so much? Are you heroes with benefits or something?”

He jokingly wiggled his eyebrows at the other and broke off one of his shoulder armor toasts, biting through half of it before reaching for the peanut butter jar.

Shadowclops snickered, signing something that made Badgerclops’ face burn. Most likely due to choking on his toast, but also from embarrassment.

‘Are you ok?‘ Shadowbat signed, their head popping over the edge of the fort to look at him with concern, miniature toast crown slipping a little.

“Y- *hHrGk* yeah,” Badgerclops hacked, giving the Adorabats a thumbs up “never better!“

Shadowclops thwacked him on the back as he continued to wheeze. 

“Thanks man.”

‘no problem :).‘

Absentmindedly he shoved his other shoulder toast into his mouth. Anything to get his mind off of Shadowclops signing ‘dude, we’re lovers, lol’. 

Sure, he’d thought about it a few times when he was alone, or when he and Mao’d had a soft moment together.

And yeah, maybe they made out before when they’d been on the road *cough* and in his art and some of his dreams *cough*. But officially?

Badgerclops’ brow furrowed and he crossed his arms. Officially they were partners, co- heroes. They were best buds protecting Pure Heart Valley along with Adorabat.

He glanced back at Shadowclops, Shadowbat was splitting part of their crown and giving him half. He wondered what it would be like to have that kind of relationship with his Mao.

“Whoops!“

Adorabat’s controller clattered as it hit the floor, skidding under the couch and breaking Badgerclops out of his thoughts.

“Sorry! Could one a y’all get that for me?“

“Oh yeah, sure.“ 

He blindly searched for the controller with this robo arm, something thunking against it. “I think I got- oh no. GET OUTTA THE WAY!!“

Badgerclops’ arm started to spark, flipping through different modes before settling on the blaster setting. 

“Nonononono. SHADOWCLOPS, SAVE SOFIA- AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!“ he yelled, arm rapid fire blasting through the toast fort and parts of HQ.

Badgerclops rushed out of the fort, tripping on the living room table and breaking it in two, a wayward beam taking out part of the ceiling.

His shadow version managed to yeet Sofia into the rafters a little farther in.

Shadowbat was frantically trying to remember where the fire extinguisher was and just kept breaking thing she thought it would be in. 

Meanwhile the strength of the blasts had forced Badgerclops into the kitchen, where he and Adorabat were hitting his robo arm in an attempt to dislodge the magnet stuck inside. 

Adorabat gave up once the toaster exploded, poking at the base of the prosthetic the way she’d seen Mao do before. 

After a few tries the rogue arm sent out a strong blast, catapulting itself through one of the closed windows and into the forest.

All of them were breathing heavily, Badgerclops went to get his spare arm while the other three put out some of the more immediate fires.

Tired, and still a little on fire, they sat at the kitchen table. 

“So it’s agreed? We don’t tell either of the Mao’s what happened here.“ Adorabat said, wings folded in front of her.

-present time-

“And that’s what happened!“

“Wait, so you’re telling us, that Badgerclops’ arm got a magnet stuck in it and is still blasting stuff in the forest?“

The deputies looked at each other. “Yes.”

Shadow Mao sighed rubbing his temples before looking at Mao and shrugging. 

‘We’ll deal with it later, groceries first.‘

“We’ve decided that because of the damage done to HQ, the four of you will NOT be getting your snackies,“ he paused “... until you clean this mess up and deactivate that arm.“

The deputies deflated. “And to motivate you to get the job done quickly,” Shadow Mao poured the contents of the bag into a bowl 

“tadaaa!! mini cobbler filled beignets, specially made from Muffins’ bakery.” Mao said with a flourish.

“OOOOOOHHHHH!!!“ The deputies leapt out of their seats, rushing to different parts of the room and getting started.

The Maos nodded at each other and Mao made his way to the kitchen, not noticing Shadow Mao sneak 2 of the treats to his shade deputies.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> late night thoughts and late night talks with BC and shadowclops

Badgerclops stared at the ceiling, robo arm under his head and his normal arm draped over his stomach. 

He wiggled restlessly, thinking back to the words Shadowclops had signed to him a few days ago and hugging his pillow.

Lovers, huh. 

While not _completely_ out of the park, Badgerclops still thought it was a weird idea. I mean, him and Mao? Together? Like, _together_ together? Puh- _lease,_ as if.

The guy was a reckless narcissist with daddy problems. Thinking he was always in the right and nagging about rules and chores and eating lunch without him and Adorabat. He was a total wet blanket.

Always running headfirst into battle with no regard for how they would feel if he got hurt. Making him worry with how many fights _Mao_ started because of a misunderstanding.

So what if he offered to stay with Badgerclops after his crew abandoned him? 

So what if they kind of bonded over crappy family expectations and strained relationships. If he was always there when his robo arm was wigging out again. 

If he (admittedly) looked pretty cool when he was fighting. Or that his spontaneity and improv made Badgerclops’ plans run smoother. 

Or that his jokes were actually pretty funny and his laugh was kind of scary but also kind of really hot.

O-or that Mao’s mouth was really soft, and his teeth felt kinda nice when he bit him. Or that he let Badgerclops be one of the only ones to squish his paw beans.

His face burned and he turned to face the wall next to the bunk bed.

...

Or that they sometimes cuddled after a particularly bad battle because Mao insisted it was a hero’s duty even though they both knew it was because the other didn’t want to be alone.

“A;LSDKFJS;DFLK!!” Badgerclops shoved the pillow over his head and kicked his legs a little, careful not to be too loud or jostle the bed. This was dumb.

He huffed, pulling the pillow away and rolling over to his side. His stomach grumbled. Snacks always helped him think. 

“Hey!“ he whispered. “Psst! Heeeyyyy!!”

“Mao, ‘dorabat! Uhhh, Shadowbat?“ 

He peaked over the edge of the bed. “You guys awake?”

Adorabat and Shadowbat were huddled together under his bunk, swaying a little as they clung to the bed frame.

Badgerclops’ ear twitched, listening for his co hero’s special ‘mao’ snoring.

Once he was sure they were all asleep, he carefully climbed down the bedpost and stairs, making his way to the... already lit kitchen?

Poking his head in the doorway, he saw Shadowclops digging through the fridge. Well, half of him anyway, the shade’s hips swaying to an unheard tune as they moved some stuff around to get to the back.

Badgerclops snorted out a laugh, dissolving into high pitched giggles when Shadowclops startled and bumped his head on the roof of the fridge.

They glared at him (honestly though, it was more of a pout), arms full of junk food from the cabinets, a large soda in one clawed hand.

“Sorry dude.“ Badgerclops managed to squeak out, still riding high on amusement as he grabbed his big boy mug from the dish rack and sat down.

“It was just _really_ funny watching you look through the fridge.“

He shook his mug and nodded at the mostly full 2 liter bottle. “You gonna share that?”

Shadowclops rolled their eye, hip bumping the fridge closed and walking over to fill the other’s cup.

“So where’s Shadow Mao?“ Badgerclops asked, taking one of the bags and shoving a handful of chips into his mouth.

He watched the shade lean to the side and tilt their chin towards the living room. 

The badger turned in his seat, barely able to make out Shadow Mao’s form lying on the couch.

“Heheh, cute. Remember that time he crashed on the bottom bunk?“

Shadowclops nodded, both of them snickering at each other. 

“Oh man, Mao’d be so pissed if he knew we still had the photos.“ 

_Technically_ he did delete them. From his phone at least.

Badgerclops took a sip of his soda, his smile slipping into something softer.

He looked down at his mug, lightly rubbing his thumb against the design on the side.

“Hey, uh, can i ask you a question?“

Shadowclops’ ears perked, head tilting to the side. 

‘Sure dude, what’s up?‘ he signed.

“How, um. How'd y’all get together?“

The shade’s eye widened before they wiggled their brow. Badgerclops laughed behind his hand, fur poofing up a little in embarrassment.

“Oh my god _no_ , I was just curious is all. C’mon man, quit it.“ he said, slapping at his doppleganger’s arm and trying to will his blush away.

The other deflected and tried to squish his cheek, resulting in a mini slap fight. 

It got settled pretty quickly after one of them almost knocked Mao’s Lucky Ducky off the table.

Shadowclops crossed their arms. They leaned back and closed their eye, trying to think of how to answer the other’s question.

‘Sorry bro, I can’t really explain it. It just kinda happened. We were co heroes for a while and one day it just, clicked I guess. We’ve seen each other’s bad days.’

They scratched the back of their head and looked away before signing again.

‘... He knows about our Ultra Focus.’

Badgerclops’ eye widened and he gasped. “No way.”

They straightened up and looked him in the eye. ‘Yes way.’

“Oh my god.“

The two were interrupted by the sound of a toilet flushing. Mao stepped out of the bathroom, half awake judging by how much he was swaying.

He yawned, chain chomp teeth on full display, before smacking his lips and noticing the badgers in the kitchen. He squinted at them.

‘What’re y’all doin up?‘ he asked, blearily rubbing his palm against the corner of his eye.

“Oh nothing, nothing. Just a late night snack.”

Mao hummed, scratching his chest as he yawned again. “mm’K, hurry up and come back to bed.” he called, walking up the stairs.

Badgerclops let out a breath. “Man that was close.” He filled his now empty mug with water and left it in the sink. That was a problem for tomorrow’s Badgerclops.

“Night dude!“ he said, hi fiving his shadow self. “Hey, thanks for answering my question. It, uh, it helped a lot. Gave me stuff to think about, y’know?”

The other gave him a thumbs up, waiting until he heard the bedroom door shut before making a beeline to the couch.

Shadowclops repositioned his boyfriend so that they were sleeping on top of him. 

‘Mrrrrpp?‘

'It's nothin', babe. Just a talk with the other me.'

Shadow Mao blinked down at him sleepily, red eyes losing the battle with gravity. They lay back down, scooting up a little so their face was buried under his chin. 

Ungloved paws made their way between them, slowly kneading his fur at chest height.

Shadowclops could feel himself drifting off, his partner’s purring and the weight of their body on his was too relaxing to fight.

He brought a hand up to rub one of their ears, the gentle scrape of Shadow Mao licking his cheek was the last thing he remembered before falling asleep.


End file.
